CONNECTOR AND CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY

Abstract

 A connector (100) comprises: an insulating housing (110), and a single conductive terminal (120) contained in the insulating housing. The conductive terminal comprises: a pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a, 123b) adapted to grip a conductor of a wire (10) inserted into the connector, and a releasing mechanism (124, 124a) adapted to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets in directions away from each other, to release the clamped conductor. Since the conductive terminal comprises the wire releasing mechanism, the conductor of the wire may be plugged in and pulled out of the connector repeatedly, thus the wire may be replaced conveniently. Additionally, since identical connectors are connected to each other, forming a connector assembly with different numbers of conductive terminals, only one mold is required to manufacture housing of each connector, thereby the manufacturing cost is reduced.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application No.201520570477.3 filed on July 31, 2015 in the State Intellectual Property Office of China, the whole disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

[0002] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a connector and a connector assembly, particularly to a connector and a connector assembly allowing a wire to be plugged and pulled repeatedly.

Description of the Related Art

[0003] In the prior art, a connector is usually formed as a one-off structure, that is, once the wire is inserted in the connector, it cannot be pulled out any more. During using such one-off connector, the wire cannot be replaced.

[0004] Additionally, in the prior art, the connector generally comprises a plurality of conductive terminals. The insulating housings of the connectors provided with different numbers of conductive terminals have different sizes and shapes. Thus, it is necessary to provide different types of molds to manufacture the insulating housings of the connectors with different numbers of conductive terminals, thereby causing increased cost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The present invention has been made to overcome or alleviate at least one aspect of the above mentioned disadvantages.

[0006] According to an object of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising a wire releasing mechanism, a conductor of a wire being capable of being plugged in and pulled out of the connector repeatedly, thus the wire may be replaced conveniently.

[0007] According to another object of the present invention, there is provided a connector assembly. By assembling a plurality of identical connectors together, a connector assembly with different numbers of conductive terminals is formed. Since the connectors in the connector assembly are completely identical, only one mold is required to manufacture a housing of each connector, thereby the manufacturing cost is reduced.

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulating housing, and a single conductive terminal received in the insulating housing. The conductive terminal comprises: a pair of elastic clamping sheets adapted to clamp a conductor of a wire inserted into the connector; and a releasing mechanism adapted to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets in directions away from each other, to release the clamped conductor.

[0009] According to one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the releasing mechanism comprises an elastic arm and a wedged protrusion located at the end of the elastic arm; and the wedged protrusion is adapted to be inserted between the pair of elastic clamping sheets to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets in the directions away from each other.

[0010] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the conductive terminal further comprises a first annular end portion located at an end thereof, the conductor of the wire being inserted between the pair of elastic clamping sheets through the first annular end portion of the conductive terminal.

[0011] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the pair of elastic clamping sheets extend from two sides of the first annular end portion to the other end of the conductive terminal, respectively; and the elastic arm of the releasing mechanism extends from a top of the first annular end portion to the other end of the conductive terminal.

[0012] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the conductive terminal is further provided with a second annular end portion located at the other end thereof, which is adapted to accommodate the end of the conductor inserted in the connector.

[0013] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the conductive terminal further comprises: a first welding leg extending from a bottom of the first annular end portion to an outside of the bottom wall of the insulating housing, so as to be welded on the circuit board; and a second welding leg extending from the bottom of the second annular end portion to the outside of the bottom wall of the insulating housing, so as to be welded on the circuit board.

[0014] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the first welding leg and the second welding leg of the conductive terminal are adapted to be welded to welding pads on the circuit board by means of Surface Mount Technology, respectively.

[0015] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a through hole corresponding to the wedged protrusion is formed in the top wall of the insulating housing. An external releasing tool is adapted to be inserted into the through hole and press the wedged protrusion downwardly, so as to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets.

[0016] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the external releasing tool comprises a cylindrical member.

[0017] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the insulating housing comprises a first side wall and a second side wall opposing to each other. The first side wall of the insulating housing is provided with a plurality of projections, the second side wall of the insulating housing is provided with a plurality of connecting holes respectively corresponding to the plurality of projections, and the projections of the connector are adapted to be inserted into the connecting holes of another connector, respectively.

[0018] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector assembly comprising a plurality of above described connectors. The plurality of connectors are assembled together side by side with each other. The projections on one of two adjacent connectors are inserted into the connecting holes on the other, respectively, thus assembling the two adjacent connectors together.

[0019] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the connector assembly further comprises an external releasing tool adapted to be inserted into the through hole and press the wedged protrusion downwardly, so as to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets.

[0020] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the external releasing tool comprises a cylindrical member.

[0021] In the connector according to each of the above embodiments of the invention, since the conductive terminal comprises a wire releasing mechanism, the conductor of the wire may be plugged in and pulled out of the connector repeatedly, thus the wire may be replaced conveniently.

[0022] Additionally, in the embodiments of the invention, since identical connectors are connected to each other, forming the connector assembly with different numbers of conductive terminals, only one mold is required to manufacture insulating housings of each connector, thereby the manufacturing cost is reduced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] The above and other features of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which;

Fig.1 is an illustrative perspective view of a connector according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

Fig.2 is another illustrative perspective view of the connector of Fig. 1;

Fig.3 is an illustrative perspective view of a conductive terminal of a connector according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

Fig.4 is an illustrative view showing the conductive terminal shown in Fig.3 with a conductor of a wire being inserted therein;

Fig.5 is an illustrative transverse cross-sectional view of the conductive terminal shown in Fig.4;

Fig.6 is an illustrative view showing a plurality of connectors shown in Figs.1 and 2 being assembled together and welded to a circuit board; and

Fig.7 is an illustrative view showing an operation of releasing the conductor of a wire by an external releasing tool.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE IVENTION

[0024] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described hereinafter in detail with reference to the attached drawings, wherein the like reference numerals refer to the like elements. The present disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0025] In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed embodiments. It will be apparent, however, that one or more embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are schematically shown in order to simplify the drawing.

[0026] According to a general concept of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulating housing and a single conductive terminal received in the insulating housing. The single conductive terminal comprises a pair of elastic clamping sheets, adapted to clamp a conductor of a wire inserted into the connector; and a releasing mechanism adapted to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets in directions away from each other, so as to release the clamped conductor.

[0027] Fig.1 is an illustrative perspective view of a connector 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; Fig.2 is another illustrative perspective view of the connector 100 of Fig.1; Fig.3 is an illustrative perspective view of a conductive terminal 120 of a connector 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a connector. As shown in Figs.1, 2 and 3, the connector 100 mainly comprises an insulating housing 110 and a single conductive terminal received in the insulating housing 110.

[0029] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the insulating housing 110 may be formed as a plastic product by molding process.

[0030] Fig.4 is an illustrative view showing the conductive terminal shown in Fig.3 with a conductor of a wire being inserted therein; and Fig.5 is an illustrative transverse cross-sectional view of the conductive terminal shown in Fig.4.

[0031] As shown in Figs.3-5, in the embodiment, the single conductive terminal 120 mainly comprises a pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b and a releasing mechanism 124,124a. As clearly shown in Figs.4 and 5, the pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b are adapted to grip the conductor 11 of the wire 10 inserted into the connector 100. As shown in Figs.4, 5 and 7, the releasing mechanism 124,124a is adapted to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b in directions away from each other, so as to release the clamped conductor 11.

[0032] As shown in Figs.3-5, in the embodiment, the releasing mechanism 124,124a mainly comprises an elastic arm 124 and a wedged protrution 124a located at the end of the elastic arm 124. The wedged protrusion 124a is adapted to be inserted between the pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b in the directions away from each other.

[0033] As shown in Figs.3-5, in the embodiment, the conductive terminal 120 is further provided with a first annular end portion 121 located at one end thereof. The conductor 11 of the wire 10 is inserted between the pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b through the first annular end portion 121 of the conductive terminal 120.

[0034] As shown in Figs.3-5, in the embodiment, a pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b extend from two sides 121a and 121b of the first annular end portion 121 to the other end of the conductive terminal 120, respectively. The elastic arm 124 of the releasing mechanism 124,124a extends from a top 121 d of the first annular end portion 121 to the other end of the conductive terminal 120.

[0035] As shown in Figs.3-5, in the embodiment, the conductive terminal 120 is further provided with a second annular end portion 122 located at the other end thereof, which is adapted to accommodate an end of the conductor 11 inserted in the connector 100.

[0036] Fig.6 is an illustrative view showing of a plurality of connectors shown in Figs.1 and 2 being assembled together and welded to a circuit board 200; and Fig.7 is an illustrative view showing an operation of releasing the conductor 11 of a wire via an external releasing tool 300.

[0037] As shown in Figs.3-7, in the embodiment, the conductive terminal 120 further comprises a first welding leg 125 and a second welding leg 126. The first welding leg 125 extends from a bottom 121c of the first annular end portion 121 to an outside of the bottom wall of the insulating housing 110, so as to be welded on the circuit board 200. The second welding leg 126 extends from the bottom of the second annular end portion 122 to the outside of the bottom wall of the insulating housing 110, so as to be welded on the circuit board 200.

[0038] As shown in Figs.6 and 7, in the embodiment, the first welding leg 125 and the second welding leg 126 of the conductive terminal 120 are adapted to be welded to welding pads 210 on the circuit board 200 by means of Surface Mount Technology (SMT), respectively.

[0039] As shown in Figs.6 and 7, in the embodiment, a through hole 113 corresponding to the wedged protrusion 124a is formed in a top wall of the insulating housing 110. An external releasing tool 300 is adapted to be inserted into the through hole 113 and press the wedged protrusion 124a downwardly, so as to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets 123a and 123b.

[0040] As shown in Fig.7, in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the external releasing tool 300 comprises a cylindrical member.

[0041] As shown in Figs.1 and 2, in the embodiment, the insulating housing 110 of the connector 100 comprises a first side wall and a second side wall opposing to each other. The first side wall is provided with a plurality of projections 111, and the second side wall is provided with a plurality of connecting holes 112 respectively corresponding to the plurality of projections 111. The projections 111 of the connector are adapted to be inserted into the corresponding connecting holes 112 of another connector.

[0042] In this way, as shown in Figs.6 and 7, a plurality of connectors 100 may be assembled together side by side. The projections 111 on one of two adjacent connectors 100 are inserted into the connecting holes 112 in the other, respectively, thus assembling the two adjacent connectors 100 together.

[0043] In the connector 100 according to each of the above embodiments of the invention, since the conductive terminal 120 comprises a wire releasing mechanism, the conductor 11 of the wire 10 may be plugged in and pulled out of the connector repeatedly, thus the wire may be replaced conveniently.

[0044] Additionally, in the embodiments of the invention, since identical connectors 100 may be connected to each other, forming a connector assembly with different numbers of conductive terminals 12. Thus, only one mold is required to manufacture the housing of each connector 100, thereby the manufacturing cost is reduced.

[0045] Although several exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes or modifications may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the disclosure, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.

[0046] As used herein, the word "comprising" or "having" should be understood as not excluding other elements or steps, and the word "a" or "an" should be understood as not excluding plural of said elements or steps. Additionally, any reference signs in claims should not be interpreted as the limit to the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A connector, comprising:

an insulating housing(110); and

a single conductive terminal(120) received in the insulating housing(110) and comprising:

a pair of elastic clamping sheets(123a,123b) adapted to clamp a conductor (11) of a wire(10) inserted into the connector (100); and

a releasing mechanism(124,124a) adapted to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b) in directions away from each other, to release the clamped conductor (11).

2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein,
the releasing mechanism(124,124a) comprises an elastic arm (124) and a wedged protrusion (124a) located at the end of the elastic arm (124); and
the wedged protrusion (124a) is adapted to be inserted between the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b) to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b) in the directions away from each other.

3. The connector according to claim 2, wherein,
the conductive terminal (120) further comprises a first annular end portion (121) located at an end thereof, the conductor (11) of the wire (10) being inserted between the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b) through the first annular end portion (121) of the conductive terminal (120).

4. The connector according to claim 3, wherein,
the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b) extend from two sides (121a,121b) of the first annular end portion (121) to the other end of the conductive terminal (120), respectively; and
the elastic arm (124) of the releasing mechanism (124,124a) extends from a top (121d) of the first annular end portion (121) to the other end of the conductive terminal (120).

5. The connector according to claim 4, wherein,
the conductive terminal (120) is further provided with a second annular end portion (122) located at the other end thereof, which is adapted to accommodate the end of the conductor (11) inserted in the connector (100).

6. The connector according to claim 5, wherein,
the conductive terminal (120) further comprises:

a first welding leg (125) extending from a bottom (121c) of the first annular end portion (121) to an outside of the bottom wall of the insulating housing (110), so as to be welded on the circuit board (200); and

a second welding leg (126) extending from the bottom of the second annular end portion (122) to the outside of the bottom wall of the insulating housing (110), so as to be welded on the circuit board (200).

7. The connector according to claim 6, wherein,
the first welding leg (125) and the second welding leg (126) of the conductive terminal (120) are adapted to be welded to welding pads (210) on the circuit board (200) by means of Surface Mount Technology, respectively.

8. The connector according to claim 7, wherein,
a through hole (113) corresponding to the wedged protrusion (124a) is formed in a top wall of the insulating housing (110);
an external releasing tool (300) is adapted to be inserted into the through hole (113) and press the wedged protrusion (124a) downwardly, so as to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b).

9. The connector according to claim 8, wherein,
the external releasing tool (300) comprises a cylindrical member.

10. The connector according to claim 1, wherein,
the insulating housing (110) comprises a first side wall and a second side wall opposing to each other, the first side wall of the insulating housing (110) being provided with a plurality of projections (111), the second side wall of the insulating housing (110) being provided with a plurality of connecting holes (112) respectively corresponding to the plurality of projections (111), and the projections (111) of the connector are adapted to be inserted into the connecting holes (112) of another connector, respectively.

11. A connector assembly, comprising:

a plurality of connectors (100) according to claim 10, assembled together side by side;

wherein the projections (111) on one of two adjacent connectors (100) are inserted into the connecting holes (112) on the other, respectively, thus assembling the two adjacent connectors (100) together.

12. The connector assembly according to claim 11, further comprising:

an external releasing tool (300) adapted to be inserted into the hole (113) and press the wedged protrusion(124a) downwardly, so as to separate the pair of elastic clamping sheets (123a,123b).

13. The connector assembly according to claim 12, wherein,
the external releasing tool (300) comprises a cylindrical member.

Drawing